A study was recently conducted by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) investigating almost 2,000 dairy farms for antibiotic contamination in milk. The FDA report showed that a small proportion of milk had residues of illegal antibiotics, causing worry about the use of drugs barred from use the dairy market. Milk shipments are only […]

The American Medical Association (AMA) adopted a resolution in June calling for the ban of antibiotics used in animal farming for growth promotion. This large-scale, inappropriate use of antibiotics has led to the development and spread of antibiotic-resistant bacteria, which is quickly becoming a devastating epidemic. “Use drives resistance, and overuse drives resistance to happen […]

Another study has come out linking the development and spread of antibiotic-resistant bacteria to the use of antibiotics in conventional meat-rearing operations. The research, published in Environmental Health Perspectives, focused on methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) in hog slaughtering and processing plants to look at how exposure was spread to plant workers, their household members, […]

Another reason to avoid meat and dairy products produced with antibiotics: beneficial gut bacteria are critical for healthy immune systems. In fact, a new research study published in Cell Host & Microbe suggests that a strong ecosystem of beneficial gut bacteria can help promote resistance to some diseases. The Caltech research team examined the difference […]

A recent report from a Sustainable Agriculture Research & Education project demonstrates that organic medicinal treatments for livestock can be just as effective as conventional treatments. The project, led by researchers at North Carolina State University, compared herbal treatments for infections such as mastitis with conventional antibiotics. They found that the two herbal treatments […]

A panel convened by the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health released a report recently warning that the use of antibiotics puts the public at risk from exposure to antibiotic-resistant bacteria. The 14-person panel examined the link between broad, low-dose applications of antibiotics in livestock rearing, and concluded that these uses could increase the […]

A recent study published in JAMA Internal Medicine shows that antibiotic use on pig farms can lead to human infection with anti-biotic resistant bacteria. The study looked at infection rates in Pennsylvania in areas near conventional pig farms, to determine if antibiotic resistant bacteria, specifically methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), were being transferred from pigs to […]

A new report by the CDC details the threats of antibiotic resistant diseases on the public. One of the factors contributing to antibiotic resistance is the broad application of low doses of antibiotics in rearing animals. This practice can lead to the development of antibiotic resistance in bacteria, which can eventually make their way into […]

A study published recently in the journal Environmental Microbiology found that beneficial strains of bacterial may be passed from mothers to their babies through breastfeeding. Researchers in Switzerland, looking at bacteria strains in mothers and their offspring, found similarities between the maternal and neonatal gut ecosystem. This vertical transfer of beneficial bacteria is advantageous to […]

Researchers at The Roslin Institute at The University of Edinburgh recently found that methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) originated in cattle. The study, which was published in mBio, reported that the jump from livestock to human hosts occurred over 40 years ago, likely through direct contact with livestock workers. This is one of the first studies […]